Publications by authors named "Nikolaos-Stefanos Bastas"

Loneliness, social isolation, and living alone are significant risk factors for mortality, particularly in older adults. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to quantify their associations with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in older adults, broadening previous research by including more social factors. Comprehensive searches were conducted in PubMed, APA PsycINFO, and CINAHL until December 31, 2023, following PRISMA 2020 and MOOSE guidelines.

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Background: Health literacy can influence self-management, leading to improved health outcomes in pediatric patients with venous thrombotic events (VTEs).

Objectives: To assess general health literacy in adolescents and parents/caregivers of children diagnosed with VTE, and their perception and satisfaction with overall thrombosis-related knowledge, thrombosis knowledge compared to that of other conditions, and beliefs regarding thrombosis knowledge importance.

Methods: Patients aged 10 to 18 years with VTE history and parents/caregivers of patients aged 0 to 18 years with VTE attending clinic were recruited in this cross-sectional study.

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Background: Target identification and hit identification can be transformed through the application of biomedical knowledge analysis, AI-driven virtual screening and robotic cloud lab systems. However there are few prospective studies that evaluate the efficacy of such integrated approaches.

Results: We synergistically integrate our in-house-developed target evaluation (SpectraView) and deep-learning-driven virtual screening (HydraScreen) tools with an automated robotic cloud lab designed explicitly for ultra-high-throughput screening, enabling us to validate these platforms experimentally.

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Background: A high proportion of patients do not regain outdoor mobility after hip fracture. Rehabilitation explicitly targeting outdoor mobility is needed to enable these older adults to recover activities which they value most. The overarching aim of this study is to determine the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial which aims to assess the clinical- and cost-effectiveness of an intervention designed to enable recovery of outdoor mobility among older adults after hip fracture (the OUTDOOR intervention).

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Objective: To compare the reliability, usability, and efficiency of video versus print instructions to teach parents a procedural measurement task. We hypothesized that videos would outperform print in all outcomes.

Study Design: This cross-sectional study included parents/caregivers of children aged 0-18 years with deep vein thrombosis attending the Thrombosis Clinic at The Hospital for Sick Children for post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) assessment.

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We propose HydraScreen, a deep-learning framework for safe and robust accelerated drug discovery. HydraScreen utilizes a state-of-the-art 3D convolutional neural network designed for the effective representation of molecular structures and interactions in protein-ligand binding. We designed an end-to-end pipeline for high-throughput screening and lead optimization, targeting applications in structure-based drug design.

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Background: Patterns in sedentary time (SED) and its impact on quality of life (QoL) in cancer survivors during the COVID-19 pandemic remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to 1) compare total and domain-specific SED before and during the pandemic; and 2) examine its association with QoL in a global sample of cancer survivors.

Methods: In an online survey, cancer survivors retrospectively self-reported domain-specific SED (e.

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Knowledge regarding the long-term consequences of pulmonary embolism (PE) in children is limited. This cohort study describes the long-term outcomes of PE in children who were followed-up at a single-center institution using a local protocol that included clinical evaluation, chest imaging, echocardiography, pulmonary function tests, and cardiopulmonary exercise tests at follow-up, starting 3 to 6 months after acute PE. Children objectively diagnosed with PE at age 0 to 18 years, who had ≥6 months of follow-up were included.

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Background: Physical activity (PA) and reductions in sedentary behavior (SED) may mitigate cancer-related cognitive impairment. The purpose of this study was to examine (a) the associations between changes in PA, SED, and cognitive function in cancer survivors before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic; and (b) clinical subgroups that moderate this association.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered online to adult cancer survivors globally between July and November of 2020.

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Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed additional barriers to physical activity (PA) in cancer survivors. Adaptations to PA programmes are needed during the pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate (1) the PA preferences of cancer survivors prior to and during the pandemic and (2) the available resources to engage in PA during the pandemic.

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Context: There are no clear pediatric guidelines on the return to physical activity following deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE), particularly while being treated with anticoagulation.

Objective: This scoping review aimed to examine the current literature on physical activity beyond simple ambulation for patients with DVT/PE being treated with anticoagulation.

Data Sources: An electronic search for articles in MEDLINE, Epub Ahead of Print, In-Process, and Other Non-Indexed Citations, Daily (1946 to April 4, 2022), and Embase+Embase Classic (1946 to 2022, week 13) was conducted.

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A better understanding of the pathophysiology of pediatric postthrombotic syndrome (PTS) is needed to develop strategies to treat this condition. We investigated calf pump function, exercise capacity, balance in power output, and changes in limb muscle oxygen saturation (SmO2) and fluid content during exercise in 10 pediatric patients with unilateral lower-limb PTS, and in age- and sex-matched controls (1:1-1:2 ratio). Outcomes were investigated using bioimpedance spectroscopy, torque-sensing pedals, and near-infrared spectroscopy during incremental- and constant-load cycling tests.

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Background: Postthrombotic syndrome (PTS) is the most common complication of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in children.

Objectives: We aimed to assess the impact of pediatric PTS on functioning as assessed by movement ability, mobility, functional disability, and physical activity levels in children after diagnosis of limb DVT.

Methods: Patients aged 8-21 years in follow-up care after objectively documented limb DVT were prospectively recruited in this cross-sectional study.

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Distance education contributes to the development of teamwork skills that may be needed in business life and builds effective collaborative communication skills that allow individuals to learn on their own. Students are able to take online classes, interact with their teachers and become a member of interactive groups. During the pandemic, countries faced different constraints that changed the general perception of education.

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The interest in program- and colleges of education- level evaluation and alignment of student learning outcomes to course content has been increasing over the past several decades. Curriculum mapping establishes the links between content and expected student learning outcomes. Curriculum map is an overview of what is taking place in the classroom; and it includes evaluation tools and activities.

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Background: Injury in adolescent athletes that threatens their sport participation can result in a sense of identity loss during critical years for identity development, creating the potential for significant mental health challenges. The specific effect of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in this vulnerable population has not been characterized.

Purpose: To describe the impact of DVT diagnosis, treatment, and long-term complications on the mental well-being of athletes who sustained a DVT during adolescence and to identify strategies to improve the quality of care for these patients.

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Background: Invasive disease caused by airway pathogens, including , , , and , has high morbidity and mortality worldwide, with immunodeficiency being a known association with recurrent disease. The study aimed to describe the frequency of known immunodeficiency and predisposing factors in adult patients presenting with invasive infections and determine the frequency of screening for and detection of immunodeficiency.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted at a large tertiary Australian health service, comprising multiple centers.

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Purpose: Meeting physical activity (PA) guidelines (i.e., ≥ 150 min/week of aerobic PA and/or 2 days/week of resistance training) is beneficial for maintaining cancer survivors' well-being.

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To examine associations of physical activity (PA) and sedentary time (SED) with quality of life (QoL) in men on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer. A pooled analysis of 106 men on ADT was conducted. PA and SED were assessed using accelerometers.

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In this work, new derivatives (substituted 9-methyl-9-arylxanthenes) of xanthene compounds () of possible biological significance were synthesized by developing a new synthesis method. In order to obtain xanthene derivatives, the original alkene compounds to be used as the starting materials were synthesized in four steps using appropriate reactions. A cyclization reaction by intramolecular Friedel-Crafts alkylation was carried out in order to synthesize the desired xanthene derivatives using the alkenes as starting compounds.

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Background: Neuromata developed after major extremity amputation can cause pain, limit the use of prosthetics, and negatively affect the quality of life. The frequency of postamputation neuroma varies widely. The objective of this study was to determine the incidence of patients who developed symptomatic neuromata after lower-limb amputation through a systematic review and meta-analysis.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to examine perioperative medication patterns surrounding major amputation surgeries.

Design: A retrospective chart review of 216 cases of major amputations (transfemoral, hip disarticulation, hemipelvectomy, forequarter) at an academic hospital was conducted, examining medications, dosing changes, and drug-drug interaction warnings preoperatively and postoperatively.

Results: Medications increased in 76.

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Toe joints play an important functional role in able-bodied walking; however, for prosthesis users, the effect of adding a toe joint to a passive prosthetic foot remains largely unknown. The current study explores the kinematics, kinetics, rate of oxygen consumption and user preference of nine individuals with below-knee limb loss. Participants walked on a passive prosthetic foot in two configurations: with a Flexible, articulating toe joint and with a Locked-out toe joint.

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Unlabelled: End-stage liver disease (ESLD) patients requiring intensive care unit (ICU) care before liver transplantation (LT) often experience significant muscle mass loss, which has been associated with mortality. In this exploratory study, we primarily aimed to assess the feasibility of serial ultrasound (US) rectus femoris muscle area (RFMA) measurements for the evaluation of progressive muscle loss in ICU-bound potential LT candidates and describe the rate of muscle loss as assessed by sequential US RFMA measurements. Secondarily, we sought to identify patient characteristics associated with muscle loss and determine how muscle loss is associated with survival.

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Toe joint articulation has been shown to affect gait mechanics, as evidenced by walking simulations, biped robots, and foot prostheses. However, it is not known how parameters such as toe length, foot arch length (i.e.

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